MOTW
Month: February 2018
QOTW
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Don’t fire unless fired upon. But if they want a war let it begin here. – Captain John Parker, commander of the militiamen at Lexington, Massachusetts, on siting British Troops (attributed), April 19, 1775 An honorable Peace is and always was my first wish! I can take no delight in the effusion of human Blood; but, if this War should continue, I wish to have the most active part in it. – John Paul Jones, letter to Gouverneur Morris, Sept 2, 1782
MOTW
History
The 1st Regiment of Rhode Island
1st Regiment of Rhode Island and The Role of Slaves in the American Revolution The story of the 1st regiment of Rhode Island and of the role of slaves in the Revolutionary War is not one commonly told, but should be. In January 1778, General Washington had given his approval for Rhode Island’s plan to raise an entire regiment of black soldiers. Over the next five years, 250 former slave and freedmen served in the 1st Rhode Island Regiment. The 1st Rhode Island Infantry Regiment The 1st Rhode Island Regiment was a Continental Army regiment from Rhode Island during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). Like most regiments of the Continental Army, the unit went through several incarnations and name changes. It became well known as the “Black […]
Civics
50 Ways to Leave Your Freedom
50 Ways to Leave Your Freedom (or How to Lose Your Freedom in 10 Days) Freedom…we talk about it often. It is also a commodity most Americans have always experienced. Americans may even take freedom for granted. We’ve not experienced horrific oppression or living as serfs with overlords. It’s easy to recognize the peasant – lord or king – subject dynamic. But, could we recognize freedom being slowly whittled away from us? We saw how easy it was for movie star, Kate Hudson, to lose her boyfriend in a recent movie, “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days”. After luring a boyfriend, she slowly destroyed their relationship over the course of ten days. Prior […]
QOTW
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But with respect to future debt; would it not be wise and just for that nation to declare in the constitution they are forming that neither the legislature, nor the nation itself can validly contract more debt, than they may pay within their own age, or within the term of 19 years. – Thomas Jefferson, September 6, 1789 Undoubtedly some think that the Second Amendment is outmoded in a society where our standing army is the pride of our Nation, where well-trained police forces provide personal security, and where gun violence is a serious problem. That is perhaps debatable, but what is not debatable is that it is not the role of this Court to […]
MOTW
QOTW
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If Virtue & Knowledge are diffused among the People, they will never be enslav’d. This will be their great Security. – Samuel Adams, letter to James Warren, February 12, 1779 Energy in the executive is a leading character in the definition of good government. It is essential to the protection of the community against foreign attacks; it is not less essential to the steady administration of the laws; to the protection of property against those irregular and high-handed combinations which sometimes interrupt the ordinary course of justice; to the security of liberty against the enterprises and assaults of ambition, of faction, and of anarchy. – Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 69, March 14, 1788
Our Founders
Revolutionary Woman of Mystery: Who is Molly Pitcher
Founding Momma: Molly Pitcher Who is Molly Pitcher? The stories of countless women, who made heroic and significant efforts to found America, do not end with their support of their husbands and hard work to maintain family farms, businesses and homes. Nor do they end with the sacrifice of loved ones, life savings and homes or their long hours of making ammo and tending to the injured. The founding mothers took their fight for freedom to every aspect needed by their families and country. Case in point: Molly Pitcher, the name that has become the face of the role of women at the battlefront of the Revolutionary War. Many believe that Molly Pitcher is actually […]
MOTW